Spoonful of Sugar Free

Registered Dietitian

Food

Do You Like Green Eggs in Ham?

By

Yes, I like them Sam I Am!

But not as much as I like pistachio butter…

This is amazing! It may hurt your fingers, but it is definitely worth it. It is a funny green color, but I think it looks neat-o. Feel free to buy either salted, unsalted, or raw. You can even buy them without the shell, but they are usually more expensive. Therefore, I just hunkered down, watched some tv, and shelled some pistachios!

Ingredients

  • A whole bunch of pistachios, shelled-as much or as little as you like
  • optional: salt and/or pepper to taste

Just throw the pistachios into your food processor or strong blender and blend away! I used my handy dandy magic bullet, and it turned out well. Sometimes my magic bullet can’t turn the nuts into a nice, creamy nut butter without adding oil, but for someone reason the pistachios worked well. I think it’s because pistachios are softer nuts compared to most.

Say!

I like pistachio butter

I do!! I like it, Sam-I-am!

And I would eat it in a (celery) boat!


And I would eat it with a goat…

And I will eat it in the rain on a cracker.


And in the dark.

And on a train banana.


And in a car.

And in a tree apple.


It is so good so good you see!

So I will eat it in a box on a slice of grain-free banana bread .

So I will eat it in a box.

And I will eat it with a fox more bananas.



And I will eat it in a house on ants on a log.

And I will eat it with a mouse some oatmeal.

And I will eat it here and there on another banana with chocolate.

Say! I will eat it ANYWHERE!

Not only because it tastes good, but because it:

  • Has lots of good monounsaturated fat for a healthy heart
  • Decreases bad cholesterol and helps the good
  • Contains carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin that help protect the eyes
  • Contains copper to help form connective tissues
  • Contains vitamin B6 to help you have a healthy immune system
  • Lowest calorie nut! 40 pistachios are only 120 calories! And it takes longer to peel each one, so you will eat less!

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

Did you read Dr. Seuss books as a kid?

I love Dr. Seuss! I remember dressing up for his birthday in elementary school. We had green eggs and ham for lunch, and we read his books all day long. In fact…I went to Seussland this weekend…

My brother likes green eggs and ham, too!

Psst! Check out Chocolate Covered Katie’s Bake sale today! I am donating a batch of Smacaroons to help Japan!

Carob is Not Chocolate

By

But it is rather tasty nonetheless.

My first recipe with carob started with the Healthy 7-Layer Bar. I decided that I love the taste of carob then and there. When I saw my local health food store also sold unsweetened carob in powder form, I had to buy it!

To me, carob has a rich butterscotch taste. It is extremely sweet (of course, my sweet buds are rather sensitive) without adding sugar. Some say it has a tootsie-roll taste. I don’t know. I just like it. Don’t take my word for it, though, go buy some yourself and make some yummy carob recipes!

My first experiment with carob powder turned out wonderfully. I took my Bitter Chocolate Cake for One and simply substituted carob for the cocoa powder. Yum. This cake is no longer bitter!

Flourless Carob Cake for One

~This cake is meant to serve one person, but feel free to double, triple or quadruple the recipe. The cake is gluten free, grain-free, dairy-free, nut-free, and, of course, sugar-free!

Serves 1

Ingredients

  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 cup carob powder
  • 2 Tablespoons of squash puree, like pumpkin, sweet potato, or butternut squash
  • 1/8 teaspoon baking powder
  • water

Preheat oven to 375*. Mix all of the above ingredients together. Then add a splash of water until it reaches the consistency of a thick pudding. Pour batter into a mini bread pan or a muffin tin (It makes about 4 muffins). Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

I actually substituted almond butter for the squash in this cake (because I was out of squash puree!). It made a more dense and rich cake. Reminds me of a brownie....mmmm....

More Ideas: Try mixing in nuts, dried fruit, or carob chips! Add a little almond or coconut extract for extra flavor.

Or make a delectable strawberry and cream stack! I baked the cake in a mini loaf and cut it into 3 pieces. Then, I stacked it with strawberries and topped it with coconut cream!

Each gargantuan cake is only about 115 calories.

Carob Health Benefits: Unlike chocolate, carob contains no caffeine and it contains a number of nutrients, including vitamins A, B, B2, B3, and D. It also contains a good dose of Pectin that helps to eliminate toxins from the body.

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

Do you like carob? Have you ever tried it?

When I was younger I tried a bite of those carob energy nuggets, and I didn’t like. Consequently, I didn’t think I liked carob. Boy am I glad I tried it again!

 

Smacaroons

By

I am not lying when I say these smacaroons are awesome. Everyone who has tried them has loved them, and they ask, “These are healthy?!”

Yes. They are extremely healthy.

I have been snacking on these like crazy! They are a great on-the-go breakfast, dessert, or snack; or for serving on a lazy Sunday brunch.

My inspiration for making these came from Heather’s fantastic Grain & Sugar-Free Scookies. You all know how much I love grain-free and sugar-free foods, and her scookies looked amazing! Seriously, Heather, you are a genius!

My little bites of goodness ended up being more like a mix between a scone and macaroon instead of a scone and cookie, so the smacaroons were born!

Scones+Macaroons=Smacaroons.

Print
Smacaroons

Yield: 18 Smacaroons

Smacaroons

~These smacaroons are grain-free, gluten-free, vegan, soy-free, peanut-free, dairy-free, and, of course, sugar-free!

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups raw almonds (or 2 cups almond flour)
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut
  • 1 cup chia gel (3 tablespoons chia seed+1 cup water. Let sit 20 minutes.)
  • 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
  • 1 banana, mashed
  • 1 Tablespoon coconut oil
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375*.
  2. Blend raw almonds in a food processor or strong blender until almonds turn into almond flour. Don't blend too long or else it will turn into almond butter.
  3. Mix all ingredients together until well-combined. Batter should stick together.
  4. Take an ice-cream scoop (or your hands!) and form into balls.
  5. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown. I like to broil it for the last minute or so, so the macaroons get a nice crunchy edge.
https://www.spoonfulofsugarfree.com/2011/03/21/smacaroons/

 

I love the coconut+banana+chocolate combo. The coconut replaces the peanut butter in my favorite combo that I can no longer eat due to lent! The Smacaroons have a somewhat tropical taste with the banana and coconut, but it is comforting, too. They are soft and fluffy in the middle, but nice and crispy on the outside. They taste delightful straight out of the oven because the chocolate is nice and melty!

You can omit the banana if you want to make it completely sugar-free; but it tastes so good with the banana and bananas are good for you! Natural sugars are a-okay in my book!

 

Health Benefits

  • Almonds: Almonds are a major superfood, and they are full of monounsaturated, good-for-you fats. It contains many nutrients that benefit the brain, and regulate cholesterol. The monounsaturated fats and vitamin E reduce the risk of heart disease.
  • Coconut: Coconut is widely misunderstood because of it’s high fat content; however, coconut’s saturated fat is made up of medium-chain fatty acids. These medium-chains are easy to absorb and digest, and are converted quickly into energy. Coconut is also a great source of dietary fiber with a whopping 5 grams per oz.!
  • Chocolate: Click HERE for a post I did about all the benefits of chocolate.
  • Bananas: Rich in potassium, bananas help the body’s circulatory system deliver oxygen to the brain. This also helps maintain a regular heartbeat and a proper balance of water in the body. It also contains tryptophan to help relax you and lift your spirits!
  • Chia: Click HERE for a post I did about all the benefits of chia.

 

I calculated the nutrition facts for the smacaroons because I was interested to see the calorie content for something made out of mostly almonds. Each Smacaroon is only about 100 calories! I would take one of these over those artificial, bland, cracker-like 100-calorie packs any day!

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

Do you follow recipes?

I never follow recipes really. I always change something in my food! I may glance over the ingredient list, but I always end up throwing whatever I want into the mix. I also rarely measure my ingredients. If it is the right consistency, it is probably fine!

Spinach: The New Food Coloring

By

Hello!!! How was your St. Patrick’s Day? Did you wear green? If you didn’t, then I virtually pinch you 😉

If you didn’t wear green, you can redeem yourself today by making these wonderful treats! There were so many great bloggers who made tasty treats in honor of St. Patty’s day; so I had to try a few!

Katie’s Raw Mint Chocolate Chip Milkshake.

Oh my goodness everybody. Have you tried this yet? It seriously tastes like a chocolate mint milkshake, but it is sugar-free! Aren’t bananas amazing? I have made this milkshake at least 10 times already because it is so good and easy to make. Not to mention it has 2 cups of spinach in it, and I can’t even taste it! Katie, you are a genius.

Pure2Raw’s Green Beer Socca.

I didn’t add the spirulina to make it green, but I thoroughly enjoyed this beer socca. Remember when I made this green socca pizza? Well, I think this socca would taste fabulous as a pizza, too. When I was a kid, one of my favorite foods was beer bread. I know. I was a strange child. Anyway, when I gave up gluten, I thought I would never taste beer bread again. I was wrong-o! I see a lot more gluten-free beer breads in my future…in fact, one is baking in the oven right now!

I also had a nice stack of green gluten-free pancakes. These were very easy to make. All I did was blend 2 cups of spinach with the 1 1/4 cups of milk in my One-Size Fits All Pancakes. Then I continued to make the pancakes as usual, and I added a banana to make it banana-flavored.

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

How did you celebrate St. Patty’s Day?

Honestly, the only way I celebrated it was by wearing green and making these recipes!

 

Some Kind of Herb…

By

Hello hello! How are you on this lovely day?

I had so much fun reading everyone’s guesses to the mystery side dish! Pretty much everyone guessed that it was either butternut squash or sweet potato. Everyone guessed the spinach 🙂 Most people saw the wild rice, but no one guessed the secret herb!

I would have to say that the reader, Molly, guessed the closest with her guess of:

“i’ll have to go with roasted sweet potato, wild rice, spinach, thyme, white pepper perhaps, and some kind of oil”

What is the Secret Herb?

Rosemary!

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Wild Rice

~This dish is extremely easy to make, but it is very delicious. I make it a lot for Thanksgiving, or for a quick lunch. Vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, soy-free, and, of course, sugar-free!

Serves 6

Ingredients

  • 4 medium-sized sweet potatoes
  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/3 cup fresh rosemary, or 2 Tablespoons dried
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 3/4 cup wild rice
  • optional: spinach, lemon juice

I don’t really measure when I make this dish, but I simply drizzle as much olive oil as I need, chop as many sweet potatoes I need, and  sprinkle as many herbs as I need. However, here are the measurements if you need them.

Preheat oven to 450*. Scrub the sweet potatoes’ skins until clean, and keep the skins on. The skin gives the potatoes a nice chewy edge when roasted, not to mention a good amount of healthy fiber. Chop into bite-sized pieces, and lay them in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Drizzle olive oil on the potatoes and sprinkle the herbs. Lightly stir so they are evenly coated. Bake for 40 minutes or until they are slightly browned.

In the meantime, cook the wild rice. In a large saucepan, boil 1 1/2 cups water. Add the rice, and turn down the heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes. For this dish, I like the wild rice a bit crunchier than usual, and not completely cooked.

When the rice and sweet potatoes are done, toss them together until evenly mixed. Either serve plain or on top of a bed of spinach drizzled with lemon juice.

Health Benefits

  • Sweet Potatoes: Click HERE for a post about the benefits of sweet potatoes.
  • Wild Rice: This rich, nutty short grain rice has 5x more flavonoids than regular white rice, and is a great source of anthocyanin antioxidants. It is also an anti-aging agent, and has 7g protein and 3g fiber per cup.
  • Rosemary: Rosemary is rich in calcium, magnesium and potassium. It has good amount of phosphorus, sodium and iron with small amount of zinc, copper, manganese and selenium. It is also useful in increasing blood circulation, improving concentration and digestion. It stimulates the immune system, reduces the severity of asthma attacks and helps prevent breast cancer.
  • Olive Oil: Full of monounsaturated fats and antioxidant, olive oil can protect against heart disease by controlling LDL (“bad”) cholesterol levels while raising HDL (the “good” cholesterol) levels. Make sure you buy Extra Virgin Olive Oil because it is least processed. Also, don’t keep your oil too long because it can go bad quickly, and keep it in a cool, dark place.

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What is your favorite board game as a kid?

When I was little I LOVED Shoots and Latters, and Sorry! I have two younger siblings, so I always had someone to play with. I was also a big fan of Monopoly and Clue because I loved gathering the money and being the “Banker” or solving mysteries.

 

Guess the Side Dish!

By

Hi everyone! How was your weekend? Hectic? Relaxed? Fun?

Today we are going to play a game of guess the side dish. Can you guess the ingredients in this lovely bowl?

Hehe….I love playing games! I will post the winner on Wednesday when I reveal the recipe to this simple, yet delectable dish.